Maya(Bar, Club)

Maya Review

Maya sits on the top of London’s Dean Street in Soho, just down from Oxford Street – it’d be easy to miss if it wasn’t for the velvet rope and glam guest list girl, as on street level Maya is just another doorway – all the action takes place underground.

At the bottom of a staircase and at the end of a corridor with large coat-check facilities, lies the single large room which is Maya. The club feels more Arabian in influence than Mayan, with dimmed lighting and Asiatic screens covering the walls. It has the feel of a mysterious box of jewels, with the lights throughout the venue slowly changing colour over the evening from orange, to blue, to red, and purple and green, changing the mood subtly each time. This is definitely Maya’s crowning achievement – I’ve rarely seen a club transformed so beautifully by light, each hue reinventing the space, sometimes making you feel like you’re in a different place altogether.

However it can be a bit too dark at times, and it’d feel strange to be sitting in this venue on a bright summer evening – definitely a place to move on to later at night, rather than somewhere to pop into for a quick cocktail.

Maya is a club for sitting and drinking the night away with a group of friends, with over two thirds of the space given to inbuilt tables and benches. There are few intimate corners, and due to the relatively shallow tiering of the tables and open-plan design, this is a place to see and be seen, rather than a place to hide away for a discreet drink with celebrity pals.

There is a small dance floor opposite a round, raised DJ booth, but it is very small. This, combined with the table set-up which act as self-contained units, give the club a cliquey feel, great if you’re happy with the company of your own inner circle, but not the best for networking and meeting new people.

Maya tries to fill the gap left by clubs like the much loved celeb haunt China White, with mixed results. The whole place has an air of exclusivity, hidden below the streets of Soho, but stunning lighting aside, the atmosphere is lacking; again, probably down to the self-contained tables that take up the majority of the space. A separate VIP area with its own personality and feel would be a plus for Maya; you might have your area cordoned off with the mandatory velvet rope, but the uniformity of the layout waters down the exclusive feel.

Again like China White, Maya is not cheap. At £20 a head for Saturday night entry, and bottles for the table ranging from expensive to astronomical, Maya isn’t suited to everyone’s budget. A good place if you’re feeling flash and want to spend your night sitting with a group of friends, but probably not the place to be if you want to mix and mingle. Overpriced and not suited to everyone’s going-out style, but if you’ve already got your own gang and cash isn’t an issue, Maya may be the place for you....read more

Customer Reviews for Maya

The following customer reviews are not endorsed by Fluid London and are simply those of users who wish to publish their independent experiences of Maya.

“The Bouncer on the door was, according to my friend, 'honey-eyed' and he was a really nice guy to deal with. We turned up about 11:15 and he told us the place was empty and it was probably best to come back later and that he would remember us and it would not be a problem. So, we popped down to Zillis for a number of excellent Mojitos and pitched back up at Maya at midnight. True to his word we walked straight in, I paid £20 and it was free for 'ladies' so Sue was in for gratis! We walked down into the club - very nice if still quite empty. Bar at one end that was roped off and seemed to remain so for the whole evening so we used the other bar. £21 for two v&t's! Clientele - young girls in short dresses with knickers showing who clearly didn't like music and whose only desire was the gyrate to every track in a way they have seen on music videos, the same way to every single track. Couple of guys hanging around?. The DJ - blonde and pouting in her Swarovski diamante headphones. I recently DJ'd at a friends wedding and a 40th using two iPods and I can honestly say that I rate my efforts a lot better than hers. Gaps between tracks, no attempt at mixing just fading tracks in and out of each other - she was even being helped by 3 other people - absolutely laughable and the whole place was not exactly jumping. I chatted to a guy who turned out to be one of the owners - having bought the club from administrators last year. Even he admitted she was useless but 'pretty'. Anyway after ”
Atmosphere:
Value:
Quality: melkeenjef, St Albans(7 years 11 months ago)

“Maya is one of the best clubs in London and I would recommend it to anyone! Fantastic staff fantastic drinks wicked music! A great night out.”
Atmosphere:
Value:
Quality: Rachel Wilcox, London(8 years 4 months 2 days ago)

“I have been to Maya bar and restaurant once, it was really mind blowing. Very nice place to have a drink and a chat. recommend it to everyone. Keep it up staffs of Maya. Really good work. Thank You.”
Atmosphere:
Value:
Quality: Ashok Nair, India, Trivandrum(9 years 25 days ago)

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